When I'm Ready
by AdventurousPup
Summary: Months after Civil War (Cryo scene never happened), Steve and Bucky go to Tony for help and Tony reluctantly opened his home to them in Malibu. Now it's only a matter of Tony seeing Bucky, not as the murderer of his parents, but a broken soldier wishing to be more to him. - Continuation is... questionable.


Tony and Steve talked before Bucky could stay in Stark Tower.

Steve is wary for many great reasons Bucky can relate, but nothing worries him more than Tony accepting him, and hoping this can be put to rest if he ever wants to engage with him. He wished for friendship, but if not, then he'll accept being an assassin to the man.

After showing them their residence in the tower and all the good stuff to keep them alive and well-cared for with Friday's help in frequent questions for anything they will need help for, Tony left them both. Bucky didn't comment Tony avoiding eye contact with him.

He didn't have a scornful avoidance with Steve, but it's short, choppy answers or grunts to Steve's will to start a conversation with him, to get Tony to open up again and feel less inclined to hide in his workshop.

But the genius continues creating space with Steve and not budging, and Bucky is far off the grid in Tony's line. It's so much worse for the assassin with complete silence and back turned toward him. An invisible wall that the engineer made between them.

The duo felt at a loss, hope dwindling to sadness and guilt.

But one morning, when Steve already gone for his run, leaving Bucky to make coffee for himself, he can hear footsteps approaching and knew Tony is on his way for one thing that matters most in his sleep deprived, driven-crazed world: Coffee.

Bucky observes out of habit, and because of intense training Hydra forced on him in his years of confinement. But he isn't an asset anymore, he tries to remind himself, and accepts it as a habit now.

He grabs another cup and quickly emptys the content in it, so to serve it with a purpose.

This could be his opportunity; pray god, that the coffee will open a window to this deafening silence that he and Steve suffered for two weeks.

He's jittery, and forces his hands to quit their shaking so no hot coffee spills on his hands, as Tony enters.

The sight is humorous, yet adorable. Dark, brown hair tossled, and one part of his head hair smooshed because of the pillow he slept on, the imprints show on his cheek too. His face is pale, eyes sunk in, dark circles visible under them, facial hair around his expensively trimmed goat-tee growing back slow, and slugglish in movement as he walked in.

Bucky felt fragments of memory come forward and remembered Steve looking almost exactly like Tony, but sickly. Steve always got sick back in their time, and always scared the hell out of him that he worked overtime to afford medicine. Feeling the familiar protective urge made the corner of his lip twitch and he blinked, getting himself together very fast to see the next thing that got him staring.

Stark, for the first time since Steve and Bucky's arrival, is bare-chested.

Slightly pale but well-toned skin. Muscular in quite a few places: arms and chest, but he sees a pudge in the middle of his stomach, and it's fine. Stark looks well for his age, and because his work requires more than tinkering and explosive devices.

The sternum area is a mess scars. Steve told him Tony had something keeping him alive in his chest, that it glowed blue with a upside down, triangular dimension. But where is it now? And why does his chest look like someone punched a hole in it? God, he wanted to know the history behind it, Stevie and him could die for an awesome story such as this because this couldn't compare to a bedtime story their mothers read them.

His thought ended quickly mentally cursed himself for spacing out again and for staring at his chest. He didn't want to get distracted again, and from now on made as much eye contact with the engineer to do what he needed to do.

He became aware that Tony isn't moving. But staring at him. At his hand. With streaming hot coffee.

Bucky didn't want to look intruding, so extended his arm out with the mug in hand for Tony to come take what he came for. And that split moment of extention, Tony flinched.

Fuck.

Bucky didn't understand what he's done wrong. This isn't how he thought this would go, and this isn't a plan to begin with!

He hoped something good would happen and they could, maybe, exchange conversations or glances, without heat behind it. Y'know, people talk! But not a recoil!

The soldier mumbled, "M'sorry…", sadly placing the cup down on the table and gently sliding it over. It's within reach for Tony to grab it and run back to his workshop and lock himself in until the next few days pass without hearing from him, but the engineer didn't move. Nor run. He just stood blocking the kitchen runway.

He flexed his fingers, then clenched them, then bit his lip, almost drawing blood at how hard he bit down, as he grumbled, " I don' like being handed things…"

He snatched the cup up, leaving Bucky staring at his bare back, going. But Tony didn't go down the stairs to his workshop. He dragged his flannel-covered feet over to the couch, dropping down on it ungracefully and switching on the television.

Bucky quietly comes out of the kitchen after a minute, watching the man in question.

Tony's not hiding. This is progress, kind of. But good!

Steve will want to hear this. Of course. Knowing the big punk, he'll poke and pry for a bit, but he can't deny the happiness flowing through him and making his heart plum with hope again. This is partial acceptance, he can take that. He can continue, baby steps. But there isn't no denying Tony cracked open the door to forgiveness for Bucky, and he'll nudge it open further as he learns more about the man while finding a way to make amends. They can't be a team if they can't communicate first. So talking, not face to face all the way yet, is the next step.

Bucky can call this a mission he's willing to work for.


End file.
